“To be in her presence, and to feel her spirit, her energy, and her teaching is an extraordinary experience” Deepak Chopra
Musician and yoga teacher Maya Fiennes combines her talents to create a stunningly beautiful Kundalini practice focused on fortifying the body’s stress defenses. Maya uses movement, breath, mantra, and chants all set to her own exhilarating music to awaken the spirit, energize the body, and relax the mind and is the creator or the “Kundalini Yoga to Detox & Destress” video.
Spirit Voyage: How did you discover Kundalini Yoga and what inspired you to become a teacher?
Maya: As a classical pianist, I started yoga as I wanted to relax before concerts and to improve my musical performance. I have now been doing yoga for ten years, having tried all different styles including Hatha, Ashtanga and Bikram in search of spiritual growth. When I found Kundalini yoga, my search was over. Once I realised the effect Kundalini Yoga had on me I wanted to share it with others; hence why I became a teacher.
Spirit Voyage: You travel and teach throughout the world – can you share some of your experiences teaching yoga to different cultures?
Maya: I have taught all over the world, including the Maldives, Mauritius, Mexico, Greece, Asia (Taipei, Hong Kong & Singapore). It doesn’t really matter where you are. Kundalini Yoga is all about the journey within one self; the outside world becomes irrelevant. With the help of my music, I am able to teach yoga to people of all types of cultures and languages. I often find that not having a common language with my students is even more powerful as it allows us to communicate via energy lines only.
Spirit Voyage: Teaching is a real form of seva (selfless service). In what other ways is seva a part of your life?
Maya: I am a mother and a wife, which in themselves require selfless service. Apart from that, I am very connected to teaching youth in general and helping them on the road to adulthood and responsibilities. Embracing yoga tends to give confidence which is really useful at an early stage of youth. As I teach, and now that I am on Sky TV, via the channel Body in Balance, daily in the UK, I come across people with big needs and I always try to help be it through yoga, general advice, presence or other types of support.
Spirit Voyage: What type of Mantra/Chant music are you listening to these days?
Maya: I find myself listening only to mantras these days..in fact I have a mantra in my head all the time…as I create music it’s not so strange that I have it in my mind. I am in the studio at the moment recording the last mantra of my new album and it gives me pure joy. I am working on the miracle mantra, Guru Ram Das…it’s very healing, it opens the heart which prepares us for the arrival into the Aquarian age safely.
I also listen and work to other albums such as: Long EK ONG KAR on Gurunam’s “The Seal of Higher Destiny” album, Grace by Snatam Kaur, Yatri by Prem Joshua, Wheel of Sound by various Kundalini artists, The Guru Singh experience volume one, I especially love his Ong So Hung.
Maya’s DVD available at http://www.spiritvoyage.com/yoga/Kundalini-Yoga-to-Detox-DVD/Maya-Fiennes/DVD-002378.aspx
YOGI TIP*
Meditation for Emotional Relief and Self Healing
Mantra: Wahe Guru, Wahe Guru, Wahe Guru, Wahe Jio
Instructions: Sit in easy pose keeping the arms straight with the hands in gyan mudra resting on the knees. Sit very majestically as though in the court of a king. Close the eyes so that the energy of sight is not distracting from insight. Chant this layla mantra and enter a divine sound current. Concentrate and hear the sound within.
Continue for 11 minutes, then inhale deeply and hold this precious breath, concentrate the energy at the top of the head. After 30 seconds exhale and relax.
* All teachings, yoga sets, techniques, kriyas and meditations contained in this blog entry are provided courtesy of The Teachings of Yogi Bhajan. Reprinted with permission. Unauthorized duplication is a violation of applicable laws. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of these Teachings may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted in writing by the Kundalini Research Institute. To request permission, please write to KRI at PO Box 1819, Santa Cruz, NM 87567 or see www.kriteachings.org.
